A voter in DeKalb County, Georgia, cast their ballot today – but it almost didn’t happen. Despite registering in September, they were turned away during early voting last week. Our ALC staff member sprang into action, working directly with the county clerk’s office to correct the error and protect the voter’s rights. It’s just one story from a busy week of defending democracy across the country.
From California and Texas to Georgia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, our team has been on the ground to make sure voters’ voices are heard. After helping people register to vote, we’ve run election protection programs in hundreds of counties, debunked misinformation about voting rights, and helped voters get hard-won language and disability support.
This year has brought unique challenges. As some politicians attempted to silence our voices because we are immigrants or children of immigrants, ALC has been relentless in working with civil rights and legal partners to demand that Asian, Pacific Islander, Arab, Middle Eastern, and other immigrant communities are able to cast our ballots fairly and equally.
Tonight and in the coming days, we may see some politicians try to spread lies and sow doubts about our election so that they can retain their own power and privilege. These tactics are designed to block voters from deciding who represents us and who champions our needs and aspirations. At the ballot box, our communities focused on making progress on the issues that matter most: economic well-being, affordable housing and healthcare, good jobs, community safety, and the essential rights and liberties that give us the freedom to thrive, be with our loved ones, and create a better world for the next generation.
We are not letting the scapegoating of immigrant communities – a centuries-old tactic to suppress our votes and the will of the people – stop us or diminish our power. With community partners across the country, we demand that election officials count every vote, certify the results, and ensure that voters, not politicians, decide the outcomes of our elections.
Cross-Country Stories of Community Power
Amid real uncertainty and anxiety, there is also undeniable community resolve and resilience. Just as we have come together as neighbors fighting for tenants’ rights, as immigrants fighting to reunite with our loved ones, and as families who want justice and equity, communities are taking action to make the promise of democracy more real for more people.
As the San Francisco Chronicle reports, our team has been on a tour of voter workshops this year, helping people register and learn their rights in Hmong, Korean, Khmer, Spanish, Chinese, and other languages. Check out the linked story for more on our partnership with the Center for Empowering Refugees and Immigrants to help more than 50 Cambodian and Burmese Californians become voters.
This weekend and today, volunteers across California showed what community power looks like in action. ALC’s largest nonpartisan election protection program brought hundreds of trained monitors to about 900 polling sites across 26 counties. They ensured polling places had translated election materials and were accessible to people with disability, and they served as a nonpartisan check against voter harassment and disenfranchisement. ALC voting rights experts staffed a statewide hotline to troubleshoot any issues quickly and decisively.
Our impact extends beyond California. In Georgia, we helped Advancing Justice - Atlanta grow their poll monitoring program.
In Ohio, voters also freely cast their ballots, despite a series of anti-immigrant voter suppression attacks from the Secretary of State and Attorney General. With OPAWL - Building AAPI Feminist Leadership, we exposed these tactics for what they are and armed impacted community members with the trusted information they need to protect their rights.
And, in Pennsylvania, we worked with Woori Center and NAKASEC to stop unlawful electioneering at a Montgomery County polling place. When poll monitors spotted partisan materials placed alongside official voting materials, they immediately reported it and we notified county officials to make certain the illegal flyers were no longer improperly displayed.
We’re honored to work alongside so many communities to defend voters’ access to fair, unbiased polling places and vote counts. We can all do something to protect and strengthen a multiracial democracy. Join us in this crucial work.
Resources for Tonight and This Week
Take what is helpful to you and yours. For more on how communities are standing up for their rights, follow #VotersDecide and #CountEveryVote on social media.
Practicing Self-Care During Elections Season from Vote4MentalHealth
Know Your Rights: Protesting and Community Safety from Asian Law Caucus
Election Safety Resources and Support from Nonviolent Peaceforce
AANHPI Movement Challenges, Community Needs, Infrastructure Recommendations: 2024 Election and Beyond from Asian Law Caucus, National Council of Asian Pacific Americans, Aurora Commons, and Building Movement Project